The East Departures during Over-Ocean or Westerly Operations Report is a monthly summary of LAX aircraft operations that depart to the east while the airport is still conducting westerly departures between midnight and 6:30 a.m. This means that some aircraft request to depart over residences when most aircraft are still departing over the ocean. When asked why these departures were occurring, the primary response from the airlines was that the tail wind was too great for the weight of the aircraft.

On those nights when the land cools faster than the ocean, a slight offshore wind occurs blowing from east to west. For aircraft departing to the west this wind is called a tail wind as it comes from behind the aircraft as they are departing. This condition is a safety factor for the departing aircraft and it is left up to the pilot to determine whether the tail wind component is too great for that type of aircraft and its weight to depart safely over the ocean. These sporadic east departures usually occur because the pilots determine it is not safe and request to depart into the wind that is blowing from the east.

The noise from these operations impact a great deal of residents to the east and south of LAX. Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) is currently in the process of conducting a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 161 Study to obtain FAA approval to restrict these departures to the east between midnight and 6:30 a.m. when LAX is still conducting westerly departures. To check the current status of the LAX Part 161 Study please visit the study’s webpage by clicking on this link: http://www.lawa.org/LAXPart161.aspx

LAWA will produce the monthly reports, posted on this page, to document these operations that have a tremendous affect on numerous communities.